HAVERSTRAW – Thirty-year-old Justin Morales has made lots of friends in the six years he has worked in the North Rockland High School cafeteria, from co-workers to teachers and students.

He works from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., washing dishes, helping out in the walk-in refrigerator and serving some lunches. Job coach Yessenia Santana of Rockland ARC, which serves people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities, checks in on him a few times a month. Fellow employees, some of whom call him Papi, said they enjoy working with Morales, who has a positive attitude and a ready smile.

"He's a great worker," said Lori Moser, senior food service supervisor. "He's always willing to help out wherever I need him. He gets along with everybody. Everybody loves him."

Morales, who lives in New City, said he'd like to work at the school until he retires. "I love this job and I'll never quit," he said.

State officials are hoping that a new tax credit will convince more businesses and organizations to hire people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities.

Justin Morales of New City works in the cafeteria at North Rockland High School in Theills. ARC of Rockland placed him in the job and provides coaching and support. (Video by Peter Carr/The Journal News)
Video by Peter Carr/The Journal News

Starting Jan. 1, employers that do so will be eligible for tax credits of up to $5,000 for a full-time employee (30 or more hours per week) and up to $2,500 for a part-time worker. The Workers with Disabilities Tax Credit program, also called Inspire New York, will cost the state up to $6 million a year for the five years the law is in effect, a spokesman for Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Division of the Budget said.

While many companies already have people with developmental disabilities on staff, the new credit could convince a business that is on the fence to start the practice. Having the tax credit "hopefully is another piece of the puzzle that makes it easier to do," said John Ravitz, executive vice president of the Business Council of Westchester.

The council works closely with organizations like Westchester Arc and the Center for Autism and the Developing Brain to help place people with developmental disabilities in mainstream workplace venues, said Marsha Gordon, president and CEO of the Business Council of Westchester. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in Tarrytown is one of the companies, she said.

"We find that businesses tell us that once they hire people with developmental disabilities, it is really productive, makes economic sense and adds a lot of heart to the workplace," she said.

Senate Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Committee Chairman David Carlucci, D-New City, said the U.S. Supreme Court's Olmstead decision and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are requiring states to have people with disabilities living and working in the most integrated settings possible. As a result, New York is phasing out sheltered workshops, he said.

"They want to move people into integrated employment settings. The problem is in New York, (sheltered workshops have) been a way of life for tens of thousands of individuals with disabilities for decades," the senator said.

There are more than 8,000 people with disabilities in sheltered workshops, Carlucci said. Many adults in this population are unemployed, he said.

The Inspire New York tax credit is one way of encouraging more organizations and businesses to hire people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Carlucci said. An employer will receive a credit of up to 15 percent of a full-time employee's pay, he said.

Employers will be eligible for the credit if they hire someone who was unemployed for three months or more or who is an employee of a sheltered workshop. The length of employment has to be at least six months for a company to take advantage of the benefit.

The New York Office for People with Developmental Disabilities ended new admissions to sheltered workshops as of July 1, 2013. The agency set up a pre-employment service called Pathway to Employment, which helps sheltered workshop employees transition into integrated employment settings.

CAREERS for People with Disabilities, which has offices in Valhalla and Carmel, tailors job searches to the needs of the individuals, said Tina Cornish-Lauria, executive director. The number of clients fluctuates, but there are probably about 180 to 200 people working or trying to get placed at any time.

There have been different tax credits at different times over the years to encourage businesses to hire people with developmental and other disabilities, Cornish-Lauria said. The Inspire New York tax credit will be a good way to get "in the door" with an employer and start a conversation, she said.

The organization, which is in its 27th year, has always promoted the credits in working with employers, but businesses often are motivated by other factors, she said.

"I'm happy to say that many times employers are just trying to do the right thing and hire people with a disability," she said.

On Wednesday, Senate Republicans filibustered to defeat a vote on the Bank on Students Act, which would allow former college students to refinance outstanding loans at a 3.86 percent rate, without any fees. Last year, Congress cut the student loan interest rate to 3.86 percent for new borrowers in the 2013-14 school year, but people with existing loans may be paying more than double that rate. The legislation would be financed by levying a minimum effective tax rate of 30 percent on people who earn more than $1 million a year, which the GOP strongly opposes. Total student-loan debt nationwide is $1.2 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Average debt in New York is more than $27,000. Forty-four million Americans are paying off college loans.